The present invention relates generally to medical implants, more particularly, the present invention relates to osteoinductive medical products containing demineralized bone matrix.
A wide variety of implant formulations have been suggested in the art for the treatment of bone defects. In addition to traditional bone grafting, a number of synthetic bone graft substitutes have been used or explored, including some materials that contain demineralized bone matrix. Demineralized bone matrix has been shown to exhibit the ability to induce and/or conduct the formation of bone. It is thus desirable to implant and maintain demineralized bone matrix at a site at which bone growth is desired.
However, the beneficial nature of demineralized bone matrix is susceptible to disruption by the incorporation of incompatible materials or techniques when formulating the medical implant. At the same time, it is desirable to have implant products exhibiting good physical integrity to retain the demineralized bone matrix at the implant site, and that handle well in the operating environment and during implantation. As well, it is of considerable commercial significance that the formulation be manufacturable without undue cost, equipment or material burdens.
In view of the background in the area of demineralized bone matrix products, there exist a need for a product configuration that exhibits the ability to induce and/or support bone growth through the desired region and that has acceptable handling properties for surgeons.
Any publications or references discussed herein are presented to describe the background of the invention and to provide additional detail regarding its practice. Nothing herein is to be construed as an admission that the inventors are not entitled to antedate such disclosure by virtue of prior invention. Should there be a conflict, or apparent conflict, between the specification and any of the incorporated references, the specification takes precedence and the conflicting or apparently conflicting aspect of the reference is to be disregarded.